Snapshot Chronicles

Avengers Assemble!

Susan Getgood — Fri, 18 May 2012 03:15:51 +0000

I will admit it, I am a total fan girl when it comes to comic book hero films. Superman. Batman. X-Men. But there is a special place in my heart for The Avengers. Especially Iron Man. Because, seriously, Black Sabbath AND Robert Downey Jr.

But like the Grinch, my heart grew a few sizes this past weekend when we saw The Avengers movie, to encompass Thor, Hulk, Captain America and most especially Hawkeye and Black Widow.

In their standalone films, Cap and Thor were, well, a little bit dull. Hopefully, their sequels will be a bit more energetic, but I have no complaints about them in The Avengers. They struck the perfect note.

And RDJ is always perfect as Iron Man. Even when the script isn’t that good (Iron Man 2), he makes you love him, even though you know he isn’t that loveable.

The big surprises in The Avengers — Mark Ruffalo as the Hulk had some of the best lines, and I enjoyed Black Widow far more than I did in Iron Man 2. And oh Hawkeye….

Jeremy Renner. That is all.

But seriously… The Avengers is a perfect movie.Not the best movie ever made. But for its genre, some of the best acting and writing ever. So good, I wanted to press rewind more than once and was ready to watch the movie all over again as soon as it was over. Joss Whedon did a tremendous job with the story and direction, and all the performances were superb. Including and especially the small moments like Clark Gregg as Phil Coulson.

And oh, do yourself a favor — there are two easter eggs. Stay til the end, the very end of the credits.

“The Avengers 2″ Already In The Works (comicbookresources.com)
Joss Whedon Suggests He’d Like More Females In ‘Avengers 2′ (slashfilm.com)
Fun With Confusing Continuity: Marvel releases ‘Avengers’ movie timeline (popwatch.ew.com)

The time warp of the Metro North Bar Car

Susan Getgood — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 02:01:33 +0000

Bar Car - Photo credit: bitchcakesny

Of late I have felt a bit like I am living a distaff 21st century version of Mad Men.

I work in advertising, although for a social media publisher, not at an agency. I commute daily on Metro North’s New Haven line and live in Fairfield County, although in far less glamourous Bridgeport, not Cos Cob. And of course I am not a philandering asshole like Pete Campbell. But every time there’s a Mad Men scene on the train, or when the city dwellers venture out into the suburbs, it feels just familiar enough to resonate.

And sometimes my life has echoes that evoke Mad Men.

This was particularly strong the other night. I missed my usual express train, so had to take the slightly later train that runs local from Stamford to New Haven, and the last car (which I prefer for proximity to the parking garage in Bridgeport) was the bar car.

Plus I wanted a drink. It was that sort of day.

Sitting in the Metro North bar car when it is staffed (versus just the car with no bartender) is like stepping into a time warp back to the 60s, and not just because the actual car seems (but probably is not) that old. It’s a semi-private club, with regulars who have been traveling the commuter rails together for what seems like years. Now, the train itself is like that –I see the same folks everyday, some of them on both ends of my commute, and we chat on the platform or in the elevator at the parking garage.

But it is a quiet community.

Not so the bar car. The bar car is the polar opposite of the quiet car. It’s a party on the rails, and the regulars are a mix of modern day Roger Sterlings and Pete Campbells. There are a few women in the bar car, but it is overall a pretty estrogen-light place with a locker-room feel. For example, on this occasion a main topic of conversation was the erotic ebook Shades of Gray, which I had never heard of until the gentleman sitting next to me asked if I had read it.

Yeah, the bar car is that sort of place.

Not sure I have the constitution to ride it every day, especially since it makes me a few minutes late for my sitter when it is the 5:48 train. But I learned last night, I could do so, as there is a website Where’s the Bar Car (wheresthebarcar.com) that reports which MNR New Haven trains have the staffed bar car each day. I’m pretty sure that the folks I was chatting with the other night decide between the 5:26 and the 5:48 depending on which one has the bar.

A votre sante!

L’Odyssee de Cartier – Magnifique!!

Susan Getgood — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 15:16:28 +0000

The best advertising tells a story. Sometimes it’s simple, sometimes it’s complex. And sometimes it just stands in a class all by itself.

Like L’Odyssée de Cartier.

Yes, it’s long. Yes, there’s no call to action, although, quite frankly even if there were, most of us couldn’t act anyway. But I challenge anyone to watch the film — with an open mind — and not understand the core of the Cartier brand.

The power of this short film is not just in the production budget (although that helps!). What makes this so amazing is how the filmmaker brought us through the Cartier odyssey in surprising ways. Hopefully it will set an example for profoundly good storytelling in advertising rather than just inspire a bunch of richly executed but boring knock-offs.

Because good storytelling works at any budget level.

If you’d like to know more about the film and Cartier’s history, a post at the Inspiration Room offers a nice summary, and there is a wealth of material on the film’s microsite.

Hat tip to Sandra for sharing this with me.

A good vet makes all difference

Susan Getgood — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 02:51:38 +0000

When we moved to Connecticut last year, one of the biggest stresses was whether I would be able to find a good vet. I had been with the same veterinarian for about 15 years. Dr. Cindy Schaefer and the staff at Apple Country Animal Hospital in Stow Mass. had seen us through so many things from illness and loss, to the joy of new puppies! Cindy was more than our vet; she became a friend.

So I searched carefully on the Internet for a veterinary hospital that had similar facilities, and really lucked out when I chose Shelton Veterinary Center. The doctors and staff are both skilled and friendly, and have done a great job for our menagerie over the past year.

And no time more so than on March 3d when I had to say good bye to Music. While they didn’t have the history with this marvelous bitch that Cindy had, and may not realize how much Music contributed to the Scottish Terrier breed, they understood how important she was to ME. In that hour, that’s all that mattered.

Yesterday when I was going through the mail, there was a condolence card from the staff. Signed by the vets and the techs, with short personal notes.

The staff at Apple Country cried with me when I lost Sabrina and Nick; they had after all been treating them most of their lives when we lost them in 2008 and 2009 respectively. I didn’t expect the same at Shelton; they’ve only known us a year. But I was both touched and impressed by the thoughtfulness of the personal notes in the sympathy card.

That’s the bar, folks – veterinarians and vet techs who care for your pets nearly as much as you do.

I am so very lucky to have found it twice.

RIP Music, Ch. Blueberry’s We Are Not Amused ROMX

Susan Getgood — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 21:41:00 +0000

March 23, 1998 – March 3, 2012

I’ve known the day was coming for a while now, and earlier this week, knew it would be soon.

But it was still too soon, Music. It’s always too soon. We will miss you terribly and always.

Music came to live with us in Fall of 1998 a few weeks after the Montgomery Kennel Club Show. She was my second show dog, and became the dam of two multiple BIS winning champions Carly (GCH Blueberry’s Attitude Dancing ROMS HOF) and Henry (GCH Blueberry’s Surely You Jest HOF), and many more wonderful show dogs and pets. At my home now, I have a Music daughter, grandson and great-grandaughter.

There are so many memories of this wonderful bitch, but I think my very favorite is the day I realized she wasn’t just going to live with us until she finished her championship and then be placed. It was January 1999, and I had just returned from a business trip with a miserable sinus infection. I was lying on the couch feeling sick and pathetic, and she jumped up, licked my face and curled up to nap with me. Yup, not going anywhere.

She never met a toy she couldn’t destroy in under 5 minutes. Not even the so-called indestructible ones could withstand her powerful jaws. Luckily, once she had destroyed the squeak and pulled out all the stuffing, she was happy playing with the toy “carcass.” I was so glad when they came out with toys that had no stuffing, just a squeak.

Music was a wonderful mother — she took excellent care of her babies, and of mine too, when we had Douglas in April 2000. She loved to camp out under his highchair, and scored some tremendous treats for many years by being in the right place at the right time.

I don’t have many pictures of Music. Like many women, after a certain age she didn’t like to have her picture taken. As soon as she saw the camera, she would turn her back or walk away. Unlike her grandson Cash who will ham it up whenever you ask. The picture on this post is one I love from when she was a puppy. Not too crazy about the person whose lap she is sitting on, but all my other pictures of her are in storage or buried in file boxes in the attic.

I am sure she would have held on another week, maybe even longer. She was a tough girl. But I knew it was time when she stopped eating. Not even her favorite treat, cheddar cheese. So this morning we went to the vet, and I said goodbye.